Scottish workers are only thanked once a month

Sixteen per cent of British workers have never been thanked for their hard work, according to new national research.

Scottish workers are only thanked on average just once a month (19%), with 16% claiming said they are never thanked in the workplace.

Compared to the rest of the UK, workers in Scotland were least impressed by a public email of thanks (14%) compared to a private one (36%) or one in person (34%).

The results also revealed that Scottish workers are most likely to be thanked once a month (19%), with just six per cent hearing it on a daily basis and 16 per cent never hearing it at all.

Elsewhere in the UK, although a “thank you” costs nothing, only one in five employees hear the phrase on a monthly basis at work, while one in seven have never heard it at all, according to the study.

Optical Express launched the research as part of its ‘Thanks a Million’ initiative, which will give away £1M worth of free laser eye surgery to NHS staff and emergency service workers –professions the Great British public believe deserve to be thanked the most.

Despite being such a scarce commodity, this simple act of appreciation can go a long way, with 38 per cent of workers polled stating if someone thanks them for their hard work it makes them feel valued.

Surprisingly a simple “thank you”, whether in person or over email, means more to most workers (38%) than a promotion (28%) towards making them feel appreciated by their employer.

Yet it’s women who place more emphasis on the importance of a thank you for their hard work – 10 per cent more than their male counterparts.

Results revealed that male employees feel it’s less important to be thanked for the job they’re doing (27%) than women (18%), who appreciated tokens such as colleagues singing Happy Birthday, being allowed to leave early or being taken out for lunch more.

It was also found that 18 to 24-year-olds also felt that a pay rise and promotion were of equal weight when it came to feeling valued at work, while for those over 55 a pay rise (45%) was more important than a promotion (25%).

Harry Williamson, regional spokesperson for Optical Express, said: “Employers could be forgiven for believing remuneration is their way of showing appreciation, but over a quarter said they expect to be thanked in order to feel motivated, yet rarely hear those two words.

“Overwhelmingly, the British public thinks nurses deserve the most thanks, with firefighters and doctors coming a close second and third. We hope our ‘Thanks a Million’ initiative goes some way in showing our appreciation and giving back to those who serve us so selflessly.”

The Optical Express ‘Thanks a million’ initiative will give away £1M worth of laser eye surgery to NHS staff and emergency service workers. Those interested simply need to register their interest online at the Optical Express Thanks a Million page for the chance to enjoy the wonder of 20:20 vision free from glasses or contact lenses.

Top 20 ways Scottish workers feel appreciated:

1. Being offered a pay rise (42%)

2. Boss saying thank you in person (38%)

3. A thank you email from your boss (38%)

4. Being given a promotion (28%)

5. Boss letting you go home early (23%)

6. Boss singing your praises to their boss (22%)

7. Being taken out for lunch (21%)

8. Boss asking for your opinion on something (18%)

9. Boss saying thank you in a public email (18%)

10. Being made a cup of tea (18%)

11. Being asked to join an important meeting (18%)

12. Colleagues asking for help/advice (17%)

13. Being given a cake on your birthday (11%)

14. Being allowed to go home early (9%)

15. Bossing letting you come in late (9%)

16. Colleagues singing Happy Birthday at work (8%)

17. A thank you card from your boss (8%)

18. Colleagues inviting you out for a drink (6%)

19. Thank you flowers from the boss (6%)

20. Boss buying you a drink (5%)

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